Sins
by PreppySlytherin
Summary: This is the untold story of the children of the Golden Trio. If you thought that their lives would be easy, you're dead-wrong. After all, fame isn't everything... Watch the kids losing and finding themselves, having wild House parties and go through periods of extreme prejudice. With school added to that. Each chapter focuses on one kid and see how they try to live their life.
1. Scorpius

**(One short note: this story will mostly contain teenage drama, so it's rated T. Should mature content ever appear, I will warn you beforehand. Trigger warning: This story WILL contain thoughts of self-loathing, possible suicidal thoughts and self-harm! If you're easily triggered, please proceed with caution!**

 **Now, with that out of the way, all that's left for me to do is hope you'll enjoy this little thingy, so enjoy!)**

 **Scorpius  
** Scorpius Malfoy had never felt more out of place than he did at this moment.

His parents had warned him for this and he had taken their warnings to heart. But he never expected it to be this bad.

Everyone looked at him like he was vermin and whenever he tried to greet someone, they just turned their head away.

Whenever he opened a compartment door and asked if there was a seat for him, they just said "no" and shut the door in his face.

The Malfoys had never been really forgiven for what they had done during the War and they were often shunned. His father was still working at the Ministry, however, and there people slowly grew used to him and started to like him again, but the rest of wizarding Britain still disliked, or even hated, them.

Accepting that he wouldn't be able to enter anyone's compartment anytime soon, he decided to just sit down on the floor and be as less of a bother as was possible.

Half an hour went by, with Scorpius thinking about what life at Hogwarts was going to be like when he had no firneds, before the compartment in front of him opened and a boy with chocolate brown eyes and black hair stepped out.

"See you at the castle, guys!" he said, before noticing the blonde. "What do you want?"

"I'm sorry, but do you maybe have some room in your compartment for me?" Scorpius asked, trying one last time to find some space.

The boy looked over his shoulder at the near-empty compartment. "Nah."

"James, don't be such a prick, who is it?" a girl's voice said, and then a bright-red head appeared over the shoulder of boy Scorpius now recognized as James Potter, son of Harry Potter.

"Why, aren't you Scorpius Malfoy?" she asked him.

"Of course he is, Rose, look at the hair and clothes," James sneered.

"Shush," Rose said. "Let him answer for himself."

Scorpius stood up and awkwardly stuck out his hand. "I'm Scorpius Malfoy, yes. And you are Rose Weasley, I presume?"

Rose took it and smiled. "I am."

Just then another head stuck out of the compartment, with hair just as black and messy as James's, but with bright, emerald-green eyes. "What's going on?"

"Oh, Albus look! It's Scorpius Malfoy," Rose said, pointing at the Malfoy.

Albus looked at him. "Wasn't your grandfather that one Voldemort supporter?" he asked bluntly.

Rose, at once noticing Scorpius's blush, smacked his arm. "Al! You can't just ask him that!"

"Why not? It's true, right? Your grandpa killed a bunch of people, didn't he?" James said. "Alright, alright. I'm going!" he added when he saw Rose's glare.

"You should come in, Scorpius! There's plenty of space here!" Rose said, pulling Scorpius inside their compartment.

He sat down opposite Albus and next to Rose. Rose immediately started making small talk and asked him all sorts of questions, like his favorite Quidditch team, what House he'd be in and other things. Scorpius felt the tension slowly leaving the room, but noticed Albus was particularly quiet.

"Albus, I can't help but notice you've been fairly quiet. Is something the matter?"

"I don't want to talk to you," he said. And then, when Rose looked at him sternly, he added: "Simply because I don't know you. I don't like to talk to strangers until I get to know them and they're more predictable."

Scorpius decided to not push the matter any further. He had just met the first people on this train that were nice to him, so he didn't want to ruin anything.

The train ride was soon over and the three got out of the train and joined the other first years to go with Hagrid.

Scorpius tried to keep a straight face and ignore the whispers and stares.

"That's Scorpius Malfoy."

"His family supported You-Know-Who!"

"That they still let people like that enter Hogwarts!"

Scorpius sat down in a boat next to Albus, Rose and another boy, who introduced himself as Damian Thomas. He was fairly nice to Scorpius, having no prejudices. He thought it was stupid to hate on a child for things that happened when the boy himself wasn't even born yet.

When they caught the first glimpse of Hogwarts, all eyes grew about two times their size. Scorpius had seen pictures of the castle, of course, but seeing it in real life was way more enchanting.

They entered the Great Hall after Professor Flitwick, who was still teaching, and gathered in front of the famed Sorting Hat.

"I will call each one of you up to the front and will put the Sorting Hat on your head. It will then tell you what House you belong to, and you will join your respective tables after that!" squeaked Flitwick, who had stepped on a stool, so that he was able to look over the large group of first-years.

The list started off with "Anderson, Tony", who became a Ravenclaw. The Ravenclaw table exploded into a loud cheering when Tony sat down at their table. He was warmly welcomed, something Scorpius had yet to experience.

All went smoothly and everyone was cheerful, until it was time for "Malfoy, Scorpius" to go up to the Hat.

The Great Hall had never been so silent. Scorpius was dead-afraid of what would happen, but then remembered something his father told him before he got on the train. "Don't let them get you down. Show them what a real Malfoy is capable of."

Putting his chin up and keeping a straight face, he walked up to the stool and put the Hat on.

"Ah, I was wondering when you would come to Hogwarts. I've had a lot of time to think about this, but now that the moment is here, I am hesitating. I was convinced that you'd be a Slytherin, but…" The voice only Scorpius could hear halted. "You are very determined. Very ambitious. You definitely remind me of your father, but you have a different aura surrounding you. Clearly, you should be in SLYTHERIN!" That last word was shouted throughout the Great Hall.

Unlike the other Sortings, the Hall was dead-silent. In fact, the other Houses were slightly relieved that Scorpius hadn't been in their House. Scorpius didn't flinch. He just kept his chin up and walked over to the Slytherin table and sat down. He didn't flinch when some people scooted away from him when he sat, even though he felt his heart crack a little. He turned his back to the others and watched the ceremony, for it was now time for "Potter, Albus" to be Sorted.

Scorpius turned and looked at the Gryffindor table to see James Potter looking at Albus expectantly.

Albus sat down. Everyone expected the Hat to yell Gryffindor, but it remained silent for almost twenty minutes. Scorpius could see Albus becoming distressed and wanted to help.

Albus looked around the room, breathing heavily, until his eyes caught Scorpius's.

Scorpius had dropped his act for a minute to try and get Albus's attention. He didn't know what was wrong, but he tried to calm him down. He looked calm and signed for Albus to take a deep breath. Albus did and got as calm as can be. Then the Hat shouted its decision: "SLYTHERIN!"

Everyone looked surprised. Scorpius's eyes widened, someone gasped "Oh là là!" and James shouted for a re-Sorting and had to be calmed down by the blonde boy next to him. Albus, on the other hand, looked calm. He simply stood up and moved over to the Slytherin table. He sat down next to Scorpius and looked at him cheerfully. "Looks like you'll be stuck with me now," was all he said.

When it was Rose's time to be Sorted, the room fell silent once more. Her Sorting took a while, too. But, contrary to Albus, Rose didn't stress. In fact, she looked like she was discussing something with the Hat. Then it shouted "GRYFFINDOR!" and the Gryffindor table started cheering, happy that at least one Sorting turned out to be like they had expected.

During dinner, when Albus and Scorpius were in amiable conversation, a boy sat down opposite of them and looked at them.

"So, a Potter and a Malfoy becoming friends. Does your father know about this Potter. I bet he would find it rather… Disappointing. You do know his family is one full of murderers?"

"I am aware of that, yes."

"How about you shut up and stick your opinion somewhere, where the sun doesn't shine." Scorpius smiled innocently.

The boy clearly was at a loss of words due to Scorpius's comeback. He stood up and rejoined his friends at the other side of the table.

"I'm sorry people keep saying these things to you, Scorpius."

"You don't have to say sorry for that, Al. I suppose that I'm just going to have to accept the fact my family is not exactly liked anymore."

"I feel like I should, Scorpius. But don't worry, I'm your friend now."

Scorpius smiled at that last sentence.

The first week of class was a living Hell.

Scorpius got stares from literally _everyone_ he encountered, save for Rose and Albus.

But that didn't mean everything was alright between them.

Scorpius had kind of developed an attitude. And Rose wasn't too fond of that.

The only one Scorpius seriously considered his friend was Albus. They were always by each other's side. He even defended Albus from James once, when the latter cornered him in the corridor one day.

His classes were alright, however. All teachers treated him the same as the other students. He took a particular liking to Professor Driken, his Potions Professor.

It was on Saturday, when he was in the Library, that he got in serious trouble.

He had situated himself in a small corner of the library to study, when someone sat down next to him. It was James.

"Listen, Malfoy. I noticed you're really close to my brother."

"You have? Good, I thought I was seeing things."

"I don't trust you, Malfoy. I can't help but feel like you're up to something. So, if you ever get close to him, I _will_ hurt you. But you understand that, don't you?"

"I think Albus is perfectly capable himself when it comes to choosing who he is friends with, but I like how you are so concerned for his wellbeing."

"You've been warned," James said, standing up and walking away, knocking over Scorpius's bottle of ink in the process.

"Get out of my way, you brainless brat," Scorpius scoffed, brushing past a small Hufflepuff boy.

"Must you be so mean, Scorpius?" Rose complained.

"When I'm in a hurry? Yes."

They were on their way to DADA and they were kind of late.

"What happened to you, Scorpius? On the train you were so nice and humble. Not even a month has passed and you've turned into a stuck-up prick."

Scorpius halted and turned around. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me. What happened?"

"Nothing 'happened', Rose. This is me. If you don't like it, then leave."

"I would, but I don't want to leave Albus with you."

"Why does everyone think Al needs help all the time? He can decide for himself whether he wants me as his friend or not!"

"You don't know Al like I do, Scorpius. You don't know what he goes through! He needs his family! And you totally ruin that for him!"

"Rose, that is nonsense!" a voice said behind them. It was Albus, who had come looking for them.

"Albus! I-"

"No, Rose. Scorpius is right. You can't always be there for me. I want to be friends with Scorpius. If you have problems with him, then go."

"But why, Al?"

"Because I've grown to know a lot about Scorp. There are things that you don't and never will know about the guy and make you really understand him. Rose, I don't need constant surveillance. Let me be."

"But…" Rose started, but saw Albus's stern look. She looked at Scorpius angrily and then took her leave.

Albus walked up to Scorpius and hugged him. "I'm sorry everyone is mean to you."

Scorpius smiled. "It's okay, Al. You don't need to keep apologizing. And since when am I Scorp?"

Albus blushed and Scorpius only laughed.

He hated nicknames, but he could handle Scorp if it was Albus.

 **Next chapter: Rose**  
Rose has to deal with being in Gryffindor, her cousin and his new friend and, on top of that, one of her teachers seems to have a lot of hate for her.

" _Rose, you're such a jealous girl, honestly!"_


	2. Rose

**Rose  
** Rose Weasley was a girl who never doubted anything in her life. So to say she was shocked that she was almost a Ravenclaw is an understatement.

She was convinced she would be in Gryffindor, but then the Hat came along.

" _I think you'd be better in Ravenclaw, Rose Weasley."_

" _No… That can't be! I'm a Gryffindor!_

" _You would do much, much better in Ravenclaw, girl."_

" _But… My parents…"_

" _If the choice was all mine, and it is, I would put you in Ravenclaw."_

" _No! I'm a Gryffindor!"_

 _The Hat paused for a moment. Then, he said: "Alright, if you're so sure… GRYFFINDOR!"_

The Hat had seemed so convinced that Rose be put in Ravenclaw, that she now doubted herself.

Was she in the wrong House?

She thought about this all throughout her first week. It kind of distracted her from paying attention in class.

Professor Binns, History of Magic teacher, didn't notice. Then again, he probably wouldn't even notice if you didn't show up to class.

It was during her fourth Transfiguration lesson that someone noticed.

She had been so lost in thought, she didn't hear what her teacher, Professor Canvie, asked her.

"Ms Weasley? Are you there?"

Rose shot up, alarmed. "I'm sorry, what did you say?"

"I asked whether you know what the curriculum is for this year. But I don't think you know, if I'm not mistaken. Seems you're not like your mother. I've been told Hermione Granger was very studious, but you don't seem to be like that. More like your father, it seems. Lazy and laid-back. Shame."

"Excuse me? I am not lazy. You can't judge me based on one lesson were one thing went wrong!"

That seemed to have struck a nerve with the Professor.

"Detention, Weasley. Friday night, my office."

"Why?!"

"Professor, that is completely unnecessary!" Albus chimed in, from the Slytherin side of the classroom.

"Potter, do you want detention, too?" Canvie said, looking threatening.

"Of course not, but why would you give Rose detention? She has done nothing!"

"That's exactly why, Potter. And now you can join her."

"That's nonsense, Professor!" Scorpius said, but before he could say anything he might regret, Albus calmed him down.

Rose saw this and rolled her eyes. Another thing that was troubling her.

Albus seemed to be growing quite close to Scorpius and, frankly, Rose just didn't trust the Malfoy. She hated being prejudiced, she really wasn't, so she was trying to find other reasons besides his last name to dislike him, but she couldn't.

And that was why she didn't trust him.

He seemed the perfect student and, besides his bitchy attitude, he could be really sweet to Albus, something only his family showed him.

She got in a fight with Scorpius the other day, and it resulted in her separating herself from their group and going solo. Albus still tried to be nice to her, Scorpius just blatantly ignored her.

Sure, she had her cousins to keep her company in the Gryffindor common room, like Dominique and Roxanne, but she had no friends in her year. Yet.

She was determined to find some. She was less of an "insufferable know-it-all" than her mother, so surely she would be more liked.

Following that logic, she spent the next week trying to find new friends. During DADA classes, she sat next to a girl named Cassandra Patil, also a Gryffindor, who was really nice to her.

In the library she crossed paths with the boy she met on the boat to Hogwarts, Damian Thomas, who was Sorted into Gryffindor, too. Rose had learnt that both Damian and Cassandra's parents had known Rose's parents.

Sure, everybody had, but Cassandra and Damian's parents were friends with Ron and Hermione.

Spending time with her newfound friends made Rose forget about her doubts whether she was in the right House or not. Talking to Professor Canvie, who was her Head of House, about it seemed not to be such a great idea, seeing as Professor Canvie positively _hated_ her guts. That was made clear during the rest of the week and detention.

During detention she had to sit with Albus and write down lines.

 _I must have respect for my teachers_ over and over until he thought it was enough. He meanwhile, left to talk to other Professors in the staff room. Talk about being a responsible teacher.

"Hey Rose?" Albus asked, when they were fifteen minutes into their detention.

"Yeah?"

"I'm sorry about how I lashed out at you the other day..."

"It's okay. I just want to protect you. There's something about Scorpius that I just don't like."

"He's a real good guy, Rose. He really is!"

"Who is?" came a voice from the doorway.

"Speaking of the devil," Albus said. "Scorp, we were just talking about you!"

Scorpius entered the classroom further and sat down on the table next to Albus.

"Scorpius, what are you doing? If you get caught-"

"Relax, Rosie, I've seen Canvie, he's enjoying himself bragging about his travels to Longbottom."

"Do _not_ call me Rosie," Rose said threateningly.

Scorpius put up his hands defensively. "Okay, okay, I'm sorry."

Rose decided to just focus on her lines and try and ignore Scorpius, but she couldn't help but listen to his conversation with Albus. Not that it was hard to miss, because Scorpius didn't even try to lower his voice.

"How are you, Al?" he asked, tenderness in his voice.

"I'm fine, Scorp, don't worry!"

"Did everything work out today, though? No stress?"

"No stress at all. Well, I planned on going to the library, but then Victoire kept me talking and I didn't have time anymore, but I didn't worry. I just figured I'd go tomorrow."

"Good job, Al! I'm proud of you."

Rose knew without looking that both boys were smiling, Scorpius of happiness and Albus because he was proud.

She had never heard Scorpius speak like that. She was actually surprised. He spoke in a tone of tenderness and genuine worry. He usually spoke in an icy and mocking tone.

Maybe Albus was right. Maybe Rose didn't know half of the real Scorpius.

Maybe he wasn't that bad.

"Hey Rosie, have you seen the mark I got on that test from Flitwick? Flitwick said it was the highest mark he'd seen in ages!"

Or maybe he was.

"Scorpius, could you please leave?"

"Why? I'm keeping Al company during detention."

"You have no business here, and if you get caught you'll both be in a bunch of trouble."

Scorpius sighed. "Always the dislike. Rosie, can't you just be nice for once?"

"Not until you get your head out of your behind, become a little nicer to not just Albus and stop being such an insufferable prick!" Rose said, breathing heavily.

Scorpius looked a bit taken aback by this. He looked at Rose and then left the classroom.

"Rose that was completely unnecessary! You don't know what such things mean to him!"

"No I don't, and I really stopped caring. He is kind to literally only you! And that has to change, or I'll never be nice to him! It's a vicious cycle, Al."

"Vicious cycles can be broken. You're such a jealous girl, Rose, honestly! I just want you two to get along. You are both dear to me!"

"You've only known him for a week or so! Merlin, I-"

"Weasley! Headmaster's office, now!" said Professor Canvie, who had just returned.

"Why?" Rose said, shocked.

"You're in detention and even then you're still not working. I think only the Headmaster can help now. Go. Potter, you can leave."

Rose wanted to say something, but shut her mouth when she saw Albus's look. He signed for her to keep her mouth shut. She silently stood up and made her way to the Headmaster's office.

She knocked on the door.

"Come in, come in! I'll be there in a second!" said the voice of Professor Slughorn from behind the door.

Rose entered. No one was there. Rose walked around for a while, taking a close look at the objects buzzing and beeping in the office.

"Ah, Rose Weasley!" said a raspy voice behind her. "I didn't expect to see you so soon here. I'm willing to bet it would've taken longer if you were in Ravenclaw."

Rose looked around and saw the Sorting Hat, sitting on Slughorn's desk.

"I have actually wondered about that, too," Rose said. "I don't know whether I'm in the right House."

"I am not one to look back on the decisions I made and the opinions I have. Having said that, I do think you would make a good Ravenclaw, but now that I'm seeing you here and you've had your first week of school, I have seen a Gryffindor fire raging inside of you. It's daring and chivalry you admire and wish to possess. In that way, I think Gryffindor is the right House for you. I stand by my decision. Gryffindor is your House."

"Thank you," Rose said, feeling immensely relieved.

Finally, Professor Slughorn entered his office, ready to talk.

"So, Ms Weasley. How can I help you?"

"I don't know, sir. Professor Canvie sent me."

"Did he, now? Well, in that case, I can assure you you'll be fine. You are dismissed."

"What? Really?"

"Ms Weasley, you wouldn't know how many students he's sent to me. I just let him rage, and then send you back, with a note saying I've punished you. He's a good teacher, so I'll just have to accept his outbursts for now. It's not your fault, miss. Now, return to your common room, before curfew begins."

"Alright, Professor. Thank you."

Horace Slughorn just smiled.

Rose's next week went by so much easier. She finally could accept Gryffindor as her House, she had friends. All was well.

Except for her relationship with Albus and Scorpius.

Scorpius still barely talked to her, and Albus had also spoken to her a lot lesser than he used to.

Rose did now know why she didn't like Scorpius, however. She realized she disliked Scorpius because he did things with Albus and spoke to Albus like Rose used to. It looked like Scorpius had replaced her.

She was jealous of Scorpius.

 **Next chapter: Albus  
** Going back to the Sorting Ceremony one more time, see how Albus felt throughout the whole ordeal. Read why Albus keeps hanging out with Scorpius, despite the Malfoy's attitude, and how his fight with Rose will be solved (can it even be solved?) and how he keeps being bothered by James, who refuses to accept his brother's House.

" _I can't function when things change, Scorpius. Are you willing to accept that?"_


	3. Albus

**Albus  
** Albus Severus Potter was a weird boy, for the unfortunate lack of a better word.

And it wasn't in the way Harry Potter, his father, was a weird boy. At least he was the chosen one.

Albus was just Albus.

Not that he was some spoiled, bitter kid with a grudge against his famous dad. Oh, no. On the contrary, Albus loved his father and looked up to him greatly. His father was one of the kindest men he had ever come across in his eleven-year-old existence.

His father always took the patience to explain things to him. Sure, he got impatient every once in a while, but Albus had that effect on everybody.

But overall, Albus really wanted to be like his dad.

"Hello? Albus?" Scorpius said, waving his hand in front Albus's face.

Albus blinked in surprise. "Sorry, I must have dozed off again."

"For the fourth time this train ride?" Scorpius asked, smiling.

Albus's cousin Rose had introduced him to Scorpius Malfoy at the beginning of the train ride to Hogwarts. Albus never had problems with meeting new people, and Scorpius seemed like a nice kid. But he treaded carefully, trying not to say the wrong things. He often did that and for people who didn't know him or his condition that was enough reason for them to not like him.

Albus found people difficult to read, Scorpius particularly so. There was something bothering the boy that he told no one about. But Albus had learned enough to know that asking Scorpius about it wouldn't be really appreciated, so he kept quiet.

Albus remained observant of everything Scorpius did, in order to understand him better, all throughout the train ride, and before he knew it they were in the Great Hall, about to be Sorted.

Now this was something Albus was sure of. He would go sit there on the stool, and the Sorting Hat would tell him he was a Gryffindor and then he joined the Gryffindor table with most of his family. It worked out perfectly.

Scorpius had been Sorted into Slytherin, like Albus predicted. But he didn't seem happy about it. Nobody did, in fact.

The Slytherins all looked like he was something dirty under their shoe that they wanted to get off and Scorpius looked like he didn't care, holding his chin up and walking over to the table and sitting down.

Albus wanted to think about what was going on, but he was called up to the front to be Sorted.

He sat down and the Hat was put on him. As it fell over his eyes (it was way too big), he heard a voice only he could hear.

"Ah, Mister Potter. Finally I meet you. I feel a very Harry Potter-ish vibe coming from you."

"That makes sense, seeing as he is my father. Surely that must mean I'll be in Gryffindor, right?"

"Oh, certainly not, my sir. You contain a very different side from your father's character than your brother. You have a real, real desire to prove to everyone what you're worth. People tend to belittle you, don't they? You _are_ ambitious, oh my."

"What does that mean?"

"That you'd do amazing in Slytherin, Mister Potter."

Albus eyes widened. That was not according to plan. He was supposed to be a Gryffindor, like his father and mother. Like his brother!

The Hat, as if being able to read his mind, said: "I've never been more sure of anything in my life, I can tell you. Even more sure than I was about your father being in Slytherin."

Albus was really panicking now. He looked around the Great Hall, breathing heavily, trying to find someone that could explain this to him. His eyes crossed with Rose's, who realized what was happening to him, but she couldn't help him from where she was. He then crossed eyes with Scorpius. He had dropped his "tough guy" act to look at Albus intently. He motioned for Albus to breathe and mouthed: "It's okay, stay calm. It'll be alright."

Albus breathed in and out and, as if Scorpius could somehow use a spell to calm him down, he slowly relaxed.

Would Slytherin indeed be that bad? It wasn't as if he had no friends there. He had Scorpius. And he could see his cousins outside of class. Victoire was in a different House than the others, too. So had Teddy been when he was at Hogwarts.

"I can guarantee you, Mister Potter, that Slytherin will be the right House for you."

 _Well, okay,_ Albus thought. _Then put me in Slytherin._

"Alright, so it'll be SLYTHERIN!"

That was how it all started. The drama Albus was going through at the moment made him slowly start to regret giving the Sorting Hat permission to put him in Slytherin.

He was now in a fight with Rose, an indirect consequence of his House, and James would _not_ stop bothering him about not being in Gryffindor.

Luckily, though, he was warmly welcomed into his new temporary home.

The Slytherins were very excited that the son of Harry bloody Potter was in their House and it seemed like they expected a lot of great things from him. Which didn't put any pressure on Albus at all, of course.

With all the tensions running through Hogwarts, something was bound to go wrong, which happened the first week of classes, they day before his detention with Professor Canvie. This time, it was in an empty hallway.

"Albus I need to speak to you."

Albus rolled his eyes. "James, Merlin, can't you just leave me alone? I don't know why I'm in Slytherin! Don't you think I'd also rather be in Gryffindor with the rest of the family?"

"But you could've asked the Hat if you could be put in Gryffindor! It did so with dad, too!"

"I _did_! But it didn't listen!"

"It needs to re-Sort you. I refuse to accept this!"

Albus got really irritated now. "James, stop it! Why do you dislike Slytherin so much? Is it because of Voldemort? Because that is the stupidest reason to annoy me."

"It's not just that." James paused for a second. "I just don't trust _him_."

"Who?"

"Malfoy, Al! I don't trust Malfoy!"

"Why? Rose doesn't like him either. Scorpius is the sweetest!"

"He comes to Hogwarts, son of a former Death Eater, and just expects everyone to like him, completely forgetting his parents were murderers. Remember when dad told us Draco Malfoy tried to kill Dumbledore?"

"Do you remember that dad told us that Draco Malfoy ultimately couldn't do it, because he was no killer? That's a weak argument, James."

"No but, as soon as the kid realizes he's not wanted here, he starts bitching around and being an arse to everyone except for you."

"You don't know Scorp, James. Something's bothering him, even I noticed that. That's why he acts this way!"

"I don't like him, Al. And I hope you stop hanging out with him."

"James Potter, if you don't get away from Albus _right_ now, I will jinx you all the way to the Continent," a voice behind them said.

Scorpius came strutting forward, glaring angrily at James.

"Or what? He's my brother," James sneered.

"You need to stop babying Al. He's not in Gryffindor, I can imagine Albus feeling sad about that just as much as you. But he's trying to make the best out of it and it would work, if you and Rose would stop being all over him because he's not the perfect kid you want him to be."

"You don't know what's up with him, Malfoy. He needs us."

"Rose said the same thing, and it's true. I don't know what's up. But I trust Albus will tell me when he thinks it's time. Until then I will comfort him when he finds it necessary and _only_ when he finds it necessary. He's eleven years old, for Merlin's sake."

James looked at him. "I warned you, Malfoy. About staying away from Albus." He gritted his teeth. "You think you can just come in here and ruin our life? You must think you are really something, don't you? Well, I can tell you, you are nothing. If I wanted to, I could gather up the whole family and we would curse you into oblivion. Malfoy, you are _nothing_."

"James! Enough! Just go, I don't want to talk to you anymore."

"No, it's okay, Al. Just finish your conversation. I'll be in the common room, if you need me." He left without another word.

"Scorpius? Are you okay?" Albus whispered, careful not to wake the others.

It was the middle of the night. Albus hadn't spoken to Scorpius since the incident in the hallway today. Simply because he had no time. Scorpius had already gone to bed by the time Albus returned from the library.

Albus couldn't sleep (just stress things, he had that often) and it was then that he heard a sniffle from the bed next to him. Scorpius's bed.

"Scorp?" He carefully opened the curtains draped around the blonde's bed. Scorpius sat there, knees pulled up to his chin and silent tears streaming down his cheeks.

"Scorpius! What's wrong?"

"N-Nothing, Al. Don't worry."

Albus pulled Scorpius off the bed and down into the common room. Making sure that it was empty, he sat himself and Scorpius on one of the couches.

Albus thought for a moment. This was the part where empathy comes in, but Albus's sense of empathy was underdeveloped, which meant that he had trouble understanding other people's feelings. He just acted on what he felt was right. What he had learned over the years was the right way to comfort someone.

"Clearly something's up, Scorp. You don't have to act tough for me. I already like you. There's no need for that anymore. What's wrong?"

Scorpius breathed in deeply, as way to calm himself and then started talking.

"I just feel so terribly and utterly hated by everyone, Al. I act tough and I pretend I don't notice the whispers, but I do. I hear every single thing people say about me and I see everybody's looks when I pass by them in the corridors. And I just want to act tough for you. Because your problems are way worse than mine and I don't want to bother you. But after what James said today. I just couldn't stop crying. I'm sorry."

Albus leaned over and hugged Scorpius tightly. "I'm sorry, Scorp. I'm so sorry."

"For what?"

"For how everybody acts towards you. About not noticing before. You're my best friend, Scorp."

Scorpius was a bit surprised that Albus would call him his best friend when they've known each other for only a week and he has such a close bond with his relatives. "Albus, stop apologizing. You've said sorry for others's actions three times now. It's not your fault. You can't help it. I just need you to be there for me. You know I'll be there for you."

"Don't cry, Scorp. I don't like it when you cry."

It was silent for a bit. Then Albus spoke up again. "I think it's stupid that I haven't told you what's wrong with me. I'm a prick."

Scorpius laughed. "Al, you don't have to. I think I already know anyway."

"You do?" Albus asked, surprised.

"You're autistic, aren't you?"

Albus blushed. "Yes."

"That's okay."

Albus's head shot up. "It is? Because usually people start treating me like I'm crazy or like I'm a walking time bomb and-"

Scorpius put his hand on Albus's shoulder. "Al, it's okay."

"No, but you need to understand. I can't function when things change, Scorpius. Are you willing to accept that?"

"Of course. You're my best friend. What exactly is it that everybody treats you like a child for?"

"I can't handle change, my sense of empathy doesn't work correctly, meaning I can't sense how other people feel unless they tell me, and I sometimes say things out of the blue, not realizing the effect it has on my surroundings. My family knows this and is afraid I'll get in serious trouble one day because of it. That's why they're so protective and why they don't like you. I have a tendency to really devote myself to friendships – which has nothing to do with my autism – and they're afraid you'll leave me if you find out about my condition and that I'll be devastated or something."

"I won't leave you over something so insignificant, Al. Trust me."

Albus smiled. "I'll hold you to that. But you need to promise me you won't feel miserable at Hogwarts anymore, okay? That's exactly what those people are trying to achieve, so don't give them that satisfaction."

"I won't," Scorpius said, smiling. "Now, we should really get to bed, or I won't be able to get up in the morning."

 **Next chapter: Louis  
** Louis seemingly has it all. He has friends and family always around him, a beautiful appearance couple with a charming personality and, his biggest pride, a beautiful girlfriend, Veronica Stevens. But something happens and his life falls apart after.

" _I'm sorry, Louis."_


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